Pediatric Heart Surgery

The Heart Program brings together a select group of world-renowned cardiologists and cardiovascular surgeons, dedicated nurses, intensivists and anesthesiologists whose teamwork has contributed to the development of many new treatments and techniques in pediatric cardiac surgery, including minimally invasive management of pediatric congenital heart disease. The team’s dedication, cooperation and innovation have led to the program achieving outstanding outcomes.

Our cardiac surgery team is comprised of three pediatric cardiac surgeons who are dedicated exclusively to patients with congenital heart disease and other rare heart conditions. Our cardiac surgeons perform a variety of surgical procedures including:

Heart valve repair and replacement: fixing damaged or leaky heart valves by working with existing tissue to form a better seal or replacing a child’s own natural valve with a new one.

Staged reconstructive surgery: a series of three surgeries (Norwood procedure, Glenn procedure and Fontan procedure) for babies with Hypoplastic Left Heart Syndrome (HLHS) which will allow their heart to pump blood better to the lungs and the rest of the body.

The program is recognized for caring for patients with some of the most complex heart defects, and developing innovative practices in cardiovascular surgery to address these needs. Some of the program’s greatest successes are children who could not be helped at other facilities.

Highly specialized post-operative and follow-up care is uniquely enhanced through use of an integrated computer database management system. This system makes it possible for referring physicians anywhere in the world to retrieve complete, up-to-the-minute patient information and images.

The Cardiac Surgery Team

The Heart Program brings together a select group of world-renowned cardiologists and cardiovascular surgeons, dedicated nurses, intensivists and anesthesiologists whose teamwork has contributed to the development of many new treatments and techniques in pediatric cardiac surgery, including minimally invasive management of pediatric congenital heart disease. The team’s dedication, cooperation and innovation have led to the program achieving outstanding outcomes.

Nurse practitioners, working in close association with physicians, are an integral part of the program. They provide therapeutic interventions and help evaluate each child’s plan of care and course of treatment or cardiovascular surgery. By providing the kind of personal care that puts every child at the center of a team medical effort, The Heart Program delivers clinical excellence in the care of critically ill children.

A new procedure introduced by Dr. Redmond Burke, Director of Cardiovascular Surgery at Nicklaus Children's Hospital is the greatest hope for parents whose children suffer from congenital heart defects.